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Pros - Efficient (300- 500% compared to 90% of the best furnaces). 

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Pros - Efficient (300- 500% compared to 90% of the best furnaces). 

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-  Geothermal energy is a renewable resource as long as the Earth exists.
Cons -  Electricity is still needed to operate heat pumps.
- Geothermal energy using wells requires an incredible usage of water.

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Instead of using natural gas or oil and as an alternative to incurring high electricity bills, geothermal energy works to draw off the Earth's constant core temperature to both heat and cool the home. At first glance, incorporating geothermal energy into a house or business would seem like a no-brainer and while there are definite cost and economic savings involved with the process, all that glitters isn't gold. Here are the definitive geothermal energy pros and cons:

Environmentally friendly compared to gas or oil furnaces (no combustion).

High upfront costs with implementing geothermal energy. ($10,000-$20,000)

Not a significant source of pollution.

More suitable for new home builds as retrofitting involves large scale excavation.

Efficient (300- 500% compared to 90% of the best furnaces).

Electricity is still needed to operate heat pumps.

Geothermal energy is a renewable resource as long as the Earth exists.

Geothermal energy using wells requires an incredible usage of water.

Suitable for the smallest of houses to the largest commercial spaces.

Discharge into the Earth could include sulfur dioxide and silica (well pumps).

No cost fluctuations determined by gas and oil prices.

Fewer installers than standard HVAC and thus less competition.

30%-60% savings on heating and 25%-50% savings on cooling.

Large scale geothermal power plants are dangerous to the Earth's surface and location-centric.

Moving heat that already exists opposed to making new heat.

Damage to underground loops (tree roots, rodents, etc.) can be difficult and costly to repair.

Mostly underground for a minimal landscape footprint.

Not weather dependent like solar or wind power; geothermal heat pumps work year-round.

Heating systems won't dangerously turn off when out of gas or oil like standard furnaces.

Installation is eligible for tax cuts.

Quieter operation because of no outdoor compressor or fan.

Long lifespan (25 years for indoor components, 50+ for underground loop system).

Fewer moving parts mean minimal maintenance issues.

Smallest carbon footprint of any heating or cooling source.

Technology behind geothermal energy will only continue to improve in efficiency.

Provides either base load or peak power energy output.

All-in-all, there are plenty of benefits as well as some downfalls of integrating geothermal energy into your commercial or residential property. It's highly unlikely that geothermal energy will become irrelevant or impossible. It will remain as a nice implementation if it fits your landscape, location, and budget.

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Geothermal Energy Pros and Cons | Comfort Pro Heating & Air Conditioning

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Instead of using natural gas or oil and as an alternative to incurring high electricity bills, geothermal energy works to draw off the Earth's constant core temperature to both heat and cool the home.

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Pros- Very Efficient ( 300- 500% more efficient when compared to 90% of common furnaces)

Cons - Electricity is needed to operate the heat pumps

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Instead of using natural gas or oil and as an alternative to incurring high electricity bills, geothermal energy works to draw off the Earth's constant core temperature to both heat and cool the home. At first glance, incorporating geothermal energy into a house or business would seem like a no-brainer and while there are definite cost and economic savings involved with the process, all that glitters isn't gold. Here are the definitive geothermal energy pros and cons:

Environmentally friendly compared to gas or oil furnaces (no combustion).

High upfront costs with implementing geothermal energy. ($10,000-$20,000)

Not a significant source of pollution.

More suitable for new home builds as retrofitting involves large scale excavation.

Efficient (300- 500% compared to 90% of the best furnaces).

Electricity is still needed to operate heat pumps.

Geothermal energy is a renewable resource as long as the Earth exists.

Geothermal energy using wells requires an incredible usage of water.

Suitable for the smallest of houses to the largest commercial spaces.

Discharge into the Earth could include sulfur dioxide and silica (well pumps).

No cost fluctuations determined by gas and oil prices.

Fewer installers than standard HVAC and thus less competition.

30%-60% savings on heating and 25%-50% savings on cooling.

Large scale geothermal power plants are dangerous to the Earth's surface and location-centric.

Moving heat that already exists opposed to making new heat.

Damage to underground loops (tree roots, rodents, etc.) can be difficult and costly to repair.

Mostly underground for a minimal landscape footprint.

Not weather dependent like solar or wind power; geothermal heat pumps work year-round.

Heating systems won't dangerously turn off when out of gas or oil like standard furnaces.

Installation is eligible for tax cuts.

Quieter operation because of no outdoor compressor or fan.

Long lifespan (25 years for indoor components, 50+ for underground loop system).

Fewer moving parts mean minimal maintenance issues.

Smallest carbon footprint of any heating or cooling source.

Technology behind geothermal energy will only continue to improve in efficiency.

Provides either base load or peak power energy output.

All-in-all, there are plenty of benefits as well as some downfalls of integrating geothermal energy into your commercial or residential property. It's highly unlikely that geothermal energy will become irrelevant or impossible. It will remain as a nice implementation if it fits your landscape, location, and budget.

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Geothermal Energy Pros and Cons | Comfort Pro Heating & Air Conditioning

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Instead of using natural gas or oil and as an alternative to incurring high electricity bills, geothermal energy works to draw off the Earth's constant core temperature to both heat and cool the home.

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Pros
- A lower electric bill
- Reducing carbon footprint
Cons
- Buying panels can be expensive
- Doesn't work for every roof
Website
https://news.energysage.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-solar-energy/

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Renewal

Pro: They are environmentally friendly and cause much less greenhouse gases emissions.

Con: More land is required, resulting in a loss in habitat space for other species.

https://solarfeeds.com/biofuels-pros-and-cons/#:~:text=Pros%20of%20Biofuels,-Renewable%20%E2%80%93%20Biofuels%20are&text=They%20are%20much%20efficient%20%26%20cleaner,conventional%20types%20of%20transport%20fuels.

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Type of energy source: renewable
Pros:
-  Consistently meets energy demands, very reliable form of energy.
-  Pairs well with other forms of renewable energy.
-  Is renewable, inherently friendlier to the environment.

Cons:
-  Hard to find a reliable source of water (reservoir).
-  Expensive to manage and construct.
- Still has adverse environmental impact.

Source:

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Hydropower is an effective and widely used form of renewable energy with many pros and cons. Read more about hydropower here.

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Pro:

1. An Authoritative Energy Source That Can Be Used By Any Vehicle

2. Stable And Reliable Energy Resource

3. Petroleum is Easily Extracted And At A Low Cost

Cons:

1. The use of petroleum as a source of energy mostly involves combustion. Burning petroleum products leads to emission of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, hydro-fluorocarbons, and many more.

2 When we extract petroleum as a raw matter, one ought to refine the crude oil.  This is because, it typically exists as a mixture of hydrocarbons,  traces of sulfuric as well as other compounds.

3. Oil Spillage

Source:
https://greencoast.org/pros-and-cons-of-petroleum/

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Petroleum is a nonrenewable energy source

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Petroleum is a nonrenewable energy source

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Pros
- petroleum can be used in many different ways, very versatile.
- Petroleum has a high fuel density, producing up to 10,000 kilocalories from just 1 kg of burnt petroleum
- It can be extracted easily at a low cost

Cons
- It has a limited quantity and can produce problems if not transported properly
- it contributes to environmental pollution
- when refining petroleum, hazardous substances can be formed

link:

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A particular type of fossil fuel that is used in powering vehicles, petroleum has been widely used and offers people with a lot of advantages. However, just like other energy sources, it also has its own sets of disadvantages. Some of its common downsides are negative environmental impact, cost and availability. Its cost tends to fluctuate, and this is somehow attributed to many different factors. As for the environmental impacts, this is more on its production and combustion.

Of course, petroleum has both advantages and disadvantages that we should be aware of. Details about these are helpful to determine its proper and practical use. They also serve as guide for us especially those who are using it often for a variety of purposes.

The Advantages of Petroleum

1. It can be extracted easily.
Technologies that are used for extracting oil beneath the planet's surface are well developed. These days, it is extremely easy to exploit oil deposits in different geological conditions. It does not matter if these reserves are to be extracted beneath the ocean's surface or in regions with special climate conditions.

Petroleum is also not that difficult to produce, though most of the low-cost locations are already depleted. Now, it is being mined off sea coasts and tar sands. Technology for oil refineries has also reached its maturity, which means that refining it to get valuable products, such as gas and diesel, have also become quite easy.

2. It has high density.
The average 1 kilogram of burnt oil can generate up to 10,000 kilocalories. This means that, for only small amounts, petroleum can generate a substantial amount of energy.

3. It can be extracted at a low cost.
Due to the fact that petroleum production requires reduced technical and physical effort, it is sold cheaper compared to other sources of energy.

4. It can easily be transported.
Because petroleum is in liquid form, it is just easy to transport. It can be brought from extraction sites to power plants through pipes or vehicles. Aside from easy transport, it can also be stored conveniently.

5. It is highly available with good infrastructure for transport and use.
Oil is widely distributed to almost every part of the globe. In fact, there exists a massive infrastructure to transport it through ships, pipelines and tankers.

6. It has broad areas for application.
Aside from being the primary energy source of power plants to supply the high demands for energy of the modern world, it is used to power machines of all types, including heavy equipment, power generators and vehicles.

7. It is a crucial element in industries.
Besides being an essential commodity for transport, petroleum is a critical component in a wide variety of industries. It is difficult to think of another product that has such a huge role to play for creating other products, such as vaseline, medicines and clothing.

8. It can power up almost all types of vehicles.
This is an obvious advantage of petroleum. Whether they are diesel or gasoline vehicles, they can be run by oil. Using oil is beneficial in terms of satisfying our need to quickly move from one place to another.

9. It can support constant power use.
Unlike alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind, oil can produce power 24/7 and is highly reliable. Plus, oil engines are a technology in a mature state and are highly reliable to work with.

10. It is a powerful source of energy.
Taking into consideration cars, they can travel longer and run faster when powered by petroleum.

The Disadvantages of Petroleum

1. Its resources are limited.
Like any other natural fossil fuel, petroleum is a limited resource. High demands for energy by the modern society have stressed the conventional sources of oil reserves. The decrease in supply is clearly indicated by the ever increasing cost of petroleum on the market these days. Now, power plants are having a hard time extracting petroleum as reserves are nearly drought. In fact, studies reveal that almost half of oil reserves (which is about 2 trillion barrels) have been utilized, where only one trillion barrels left.

There might be some other sources of petroleum on earth, but experts say that these cannot produce enough oil to sustain all our needs.

2. It contributes to environmental pollution.
Extracting and burning petroleum generates greenhouse gases that contribute to environmental pollution and, consequently, global warming. This means that degradation of our ecosystems will be made faster if we choose petroleum as our main source of energy.

3. It produces hazardous substances.
Production of petroleum, especially refining, produces harmful and toxic materials, including plastic. Take note that oil exists as a mixture of hydrocarbons with traces of sulfur and other compounds, which are elements of harmful gases, such as carbon monoxide, and plastic.

4. It is a non-renewable form of energy.
Once burned to generate electricity, petroleum cannot be replaced. Depletion of fuels can occur overtime and can lead to their limited supply. When this happens and demands are high, oil costs will significantly increase, leading economical conflicts between nations. Thus, we should find alternative energy resources, so oil reserves can still continue to supply energy for many years to come.

5. Its transport can cause oil spills.
If petroleum spills in bodies of water, adverse effects in marine life are expected. Spills have caused massive ocean pollution, causing the death of thousands of animals and fishes each year. As an example, the BP Oil Spill had caused billions of dollars in losses.

6. It sustains growth of terrorism and violence.
Truth be told, oil is drilled in some of the worst dictatorships in the world. Oil money goes directly into the hands of despots who are amassing trillions of dollars. This gives rise to violence and growth in terrorism, as oil money is somehow used in funding terrorist organizations. Aside from this, this powerful pool of money also managed to suppress voices of protests.

Despite the many advantages brought by petroleum, it still cannot be denied that it also leads to unfavorable consequences. So, we need to be aware of these factors and take them as reminders that petroleum needs to be utilized wisely.

About the Author
Brandon Miller has a B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin. He is a seasoned writer who has written over one hundred articles, which have been read by over 500,000 people. If you have any comments or concerns about this blog post, then please contact the Green Garage team here.

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16 Marked Advantages And Disadvantages Of Petroleum

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A particular type of fossil fuel that is used in powering vehicles, petroleum has been widely used and offers people with a lot of advantages. However, just like other energy sources, it also has its own sets of disadvantages. Some of its common downsides are negative environmental impact, cost and availability.

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Pros
-  Can meet peak electricity demands
- Does not produce any direct waste
- Substantially lower output of greenhouse gases
- Long term use 50 - 100 years
Cons
-  Expensive up front to build

Source:

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Hydroelectric power is one of the cheapest and oldest methods of producing power, making it a competitive source of renewable energy

With the ever-increasing demand for renewable energy to power the planet, we look at the pros and cons of hydroelectric power.

Hydroelectricity technologies are broadly classified into four categories - conventional (dams), pumped-storage, run-of-the-river and offshore marine (tidal).

Once a hydroelectric power plant is built, it does not produce any direct waste and has a substantially lower output level of greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuel-powered energy plants.

At present, hydroelectric power accounts for one-sixth of the world's electricity production, with an estimated 31.5 gigawatts (GW) of capacity being put into operation in 2016.

China alone accounted for almost one-third of global hydropower capacity and added around 11.74GW of new capacity in 2016, taking its cumulative installed capacity to 331GW.

It leads the world in terms of hydropower capacity, followed by the US, Brazil, Canada, India, Japan and Russia, which together accounted for more than 60% of installed capacity at the end of 2016.

Hydroelectric Power: Pros

Renewable

Hydroelectric energy is considered renewable because it uses the earth's water to generate electricity.

Due to the natural water cycle, water is recycled back to the earth and will never run out of supply.

The amount of hydroelectricity produced can vary as a result of drought and lower water levels but this is seasonal.

Clean and safe

Unlike fossil fuels, biomass and nuclear power, hydroelectric power is a clean and green alternative source of energy.

Since hydroelectric dams do not use fuel, they do not release any greenhouse gases or toxins into the environment.

As a result, hydroelectric power features prominently in the clean energy plans of many countries.

Flexible

Hydropower is a flexible source of electricity as hydro plants can be scaled up and down quickly to meet the changing energy demands.

Furthermore, compared to gas turbines or steam plants the start-up time taken by hydro turbines is very less.

Hydropower units also serve as backup for non-hydro generators.

Cost-competitive energy source

Despite expensive upfront building costs, hydroelectric power is a cost-competitive source of energy.

Hydropower plants require low cost of maintenance and operation. Since they have few parts, the plants need minimal replacements.

Also, dams are typically designed for long-term use and are therefore capable of producing hydroelectric power up to an average lifetime of 50 - 100 years.

Suitable for industrial applications

While the majority of the hydroelectric plants supply to public electricity networks, some will be constructed to serve specific industrial enterprises.

Dedicated hydroelectric plants are often built to supply large amounts of electricity for aluminium electrolytic plants.

Other uses

Reservoirs created by hydroelectric projects often become tourist attractions in their own right.

The lake that forms behind the dam can be used for recreational purposes such as water sports and leisure activities such as fishing and boating, and the lake's water can also be used for irrigation and aquaculture purposes.

Large hydroelectric power plants can control floods as they can store vast quantities of water.

Hydroelectric power: Cons

High upfront capital costs

Hydroelectric power plants and dams can be incredibly expensive to construct, regardless of the type of building, due to logistical challenges.

Moreover, the projects take long periods to finish and will have to operate for a long time too to recover the money spent on construction.

Failure risks

As dams hold back large volumes of water, a sub-standard construction, natural disasters or sabotage, and the extreme influx of water can be catastrophic to downriver settlements and infrastructure.

These failures not only affect the supply of power but also affect the flora, fauna and other forms of life.

Methane emissions

Reservoirs and hydropower plants are often considered as environment friendly but hydroelectric dams contribute more to global warming than previously estimated.

Researchers found that plant material in flooded areas begin to rot and decompose in an anaerobic environment.

This will result in the release of substantial amounts of carbon dioxide and methane, which leads to an increase in pollution levels.

May lead to droughts

One of the main downsides of setting up hydroelectric power plants is the occurrence of local droughts.

The overall cost of energy is calculated depending on the availability of water and a drought could potentially affect this, causing people not to acquire the power they need.

Ecosystem damage and loss of wetlands

Big reservoirs associated with traditional hydroelectric power plants cause submersion of extensive areas upstream of the dams, sometimes destroying lowland and riverine valley forests, marshland and grasslands.

Hydroelectric power plants can also spell doom to surrounding aquatic ecosystems both upstream and downstream of the plant site.

Since turbine gates are often opened intermittently, interruptions of natural water flow can have a great impact on the river ecosystem and the environment.

The fish in the river can be affected by the draining of the water from the dam as well as the fish that is in the dam.

Animals such as birds, cranes and other aquatic birds, and some plant species thrive in marshy habitats.

However, because of the hydroelectric power plant construction, these habitats will be destroyed.

Relocation due to risk of floods

Local populations living downstream can become vulnerable to flooding due to the possible strong water currents that might be released from the dams.

As a result, people are forced to relocate to facilitate the construction of the dams needed to generate hydroelectricity.

The World Commission on Dams estimated in 2000 that dams had physically displaced 40-80 million people worldwide.

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videos & industry opinion - compelo energy

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What are the major pros and cons of hydroelectric power?

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Hydroelectric power is one of the cheapest and oldest methods of producing power, making it a competitive source of renewable energy With the ever-increasing demand for renewable energy to power the planet, we look at the pros and cons of hydroelectric power.

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Pros: Renewable, Zero-Carbon-Emissions, Predictable Energy Generation, High Power Output, Makes use of Modern Tech

Cons: Limited Site Availability, Difficult to Build, Expensive, Potentially High Environmental Impact, Energy Demand can potentially outgrow plant fast

https://www.solarreviews.com/blog/tidal-energy-pros-and-cons

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- The availability of coal makes it ver affordable
- Can be converted into different forms of fuel
- Clean coal technologies help to reduce the emissions that are released

Cons
- The mining of coal destroys natural habitats
- Technology relies on a finite resource
- Mining process for coal leaves behind environmental toxins

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Pros:
- cost effective
- clean
- sustainable
- domestic
- can be built on farms and ranches or in the water at no major detriment to the land

Cons:
- expensive
- pretty profuse killer of birds
- it's not always windy

https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/pros-and-cons-of-wind-energy.php

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pro - a lot of power produced by not a lot of resources without emitting air pollutants

con - nuclear waste which is hard to dispose of

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Most non-renewable energy sources are fossil fuels: coal, petroleum, and natural gas. Carbon is the main element in fossil fuels. For this reason, the time period that fossil fuels formed (about 360-300 million years ago) is called the Carboniferous Period.

All fossil fuels formed in a similar way. Hundreds of millions of years ago, even before the dinosaurs, Earth had a different landscape. It was covered with wide, shallow seas and swampy forests.

Plants, algae, and plankton grew in these ancient wetlands. They absorbed sunlight and created energy through photosynthesis. When they died, the organisms drifted to the bottom of the sea or lake. There was energy stored in the plants and animals when they died.

Over time, the dead plants were crushed under the seabed. Rocks and other sediment piled on top of them, creating high heat and pressure underground. In this environment, the plant and animal remains eventually turned into fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and petroleum). Today, there are huge underground pockets (called reservoir s) of these non-renewable sources of energy all over the world.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Fossil fuels are a valuable source of energy. They are relatively inexpensive to extract. They can also be stored, piped, or shipped anywhere in the world.

However, burning fossil fuels is harmful for the environment. When coal and oil are burned, they release particles that can pollute the air, water, and land. Some of these particles are caught and set aside, but many of them are released into the air.

Burning fossil fuels also upsets Earth's " carbon budget," which balances the carbon in the ocean, earth, and air. When fossil fuels are combusted (heated), they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is a gas that keeps heat in Earth's atmosphere, a process called the " greenhouse effect." The greenhouse effect is necessary to life on Earth, but relies on a balanced carbon budget.

The carbon in fossil fuels has been sequestered, or stored, underground for millions of years. By removing this sequestered carbon from the earth and releasing it into the atmosphere, Earth's carbon budget is out of balance. This contributes to temperatures rising faster than organisms can adapt.

Coal is a black or brownish rock. We burn coal to create energy. Coal is ranked depending on how much " carbonization" it has gone through. Carbonization is the process that ancient organisms undergo to become coal. About 3 meters (10 feet) of solid vegetation crushed together into .3 meter (1 foot) of coal!

Peat is the lowest rank of coal. It has gone through the least amount of carbonization. It is an important fuel in areas of the world including Scotland, Ireland, and Finland.

Anthracite is the highest rank of coal. Anthracite forms in regions of the world where there have been giant movements of the earth, such as the formation of mountain ranges. The Appalachian Mountains, in the eastern part of the United States, are rich in anthracite.

We mine coal out of the ground so we can burn it for energy. There are two ways that we can mine coal: underground mining and surface mining.

Underground mining is used when the coal is located below the surface of the Earth, sometimes 300 meters (1,000 feet) deep-that's deeper than most of the Great Lakes! Miners take an elevator down a mineshaft. They operate heavy machinery that cuts the coal out of the Earth and brings it above ground. This can be dangerous work because cutting coal can release dangerous gases. The gases can cause explosions or make it hard for miners to breathe.

Surface mining is used when the coal is located very near the surface of the earth. To get to the coal, companies must first clear the area. They take away the trees and soil. The coal can then be cut out of the ground more easily. Entire habitats are destroyed during this process.

About half the electricity in the United States comes from coal. It gives power to our lights, refrigerators, dishwashers, and most other things we plug in. When coal is burned, it leaves " byproduct s" that are also valuable. We use the byproducts to make cement, plastics, roads, and many other things.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Coal is a reliable source of energy. We can rely on it day and night, summer and winter, sunshine or rain, to provide fuel and electricity.

Using coal is also harmful. Mining is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Coal miners are exposed to toxic dust and face the dangers of cave-ins and explosions at work.

When coal is burned, it releases many toxic gases and pollutants into the atmosphere. Mining for coal can also cause the ground to cave in and create underground fires that burn for decades at a time.

Petroleum is a liquid fossil fuel. It is also called oil or crude oil.

Petroleum is trapped by underground rock formations. In some places, oil bubbles right out of the ground. At the LaBrea Tar Pits, in Los Angeles, California, big pools of thick oil bubble up through the ground. Remains of animals that got trapped there thousands of years ago are still preserved in the tar!

Most of the world's oil is still deep under the ground. We drill through the earth to access the oil. Some deposits are on land, and others are under the ocean floor.

Once oil companies begin drilling with a "drill rig," they can extract petroleum 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. Many successful oil sites produce oil for about 30 years. Sometimes they can produce oil for much longer.

When oil is under the ocean floor, companies drill offshore. They must build an oil platform. Oil platforms are some of the biggest manmade structures in the world!

Once the oil has been drilled, it must be refined. Oil contains many chemicals besides carbon, and refining the oil takes some of these chemicals out.

We use oil for many things. About half of the world's petroleum is converted into gasoline. The rest can be processed and used in liquid products such as nail polish and rubbing alcohol, or solid products such as water pipes, shoes, crayons, roofing, vitamin capsules, and thousands of other items.

Advantages and Disadvantages

There are advantages to drilling for oil. It is relatively inexpensive to extract. It is also a reliable and dependable source of energy and money for the local community.

Oil provides us with thousands of conveniences. In the form of gasoline, it is a portable source of energy that gives us the power to drive places. Petroleum is also an ingredient in many items that we depend on.

However, burning gasoline is harmful to the environment. It releases hazardous gases and fumes into the air that we breathe. There is also the possibility of an oil spill. If there is a problem with the drilling machinery, the oil can explode out of the well and spill into the ocean or surrounding land. Oil spills are environmental disasters, especially offshore spills. Oil floats on water, so it can look like food to fish and ruin birds' feathers.

Natural gas is another fossil fuel that is trapped underground in reservoirs. It is mostly made up of methane. You may have smelled methane before. The decomposing material in landfills also release methane, which smells like rotten eggs.

There is so much natural gas underground that it is measured in million, billion, or trillion cubic meters.

Natural gas is found in deposits a few hundred meters underground. In order to get natural gas out of the ground, companies drill straight down. However, natural gas does not form in big open pockets. Natural gas is trapped in rock formations that can stretch for kilometers.

To reach natural gas, some companies use a process called "hydraulic fracturing," or fracking. Hydraulic means they use water, and fracturing means to "split apart." The process uses high-pressure water to split apart the rocks underground. This releases the natural gas that is trapped in rock formations. If the rock is too hard, they can send acid down the well to dissolve the rock. They can also use tiny grains of glass or sand to prop open the rock and let the gas escape.

We use natural gas for heating and cooking. Natural gas can also be burned to generate electricity. We rely on natural gas to give power to lights, televisions, air conditioners, and kitchen appliances in our homes.

Natural gas can also be turned into a liquid form, called liquid natural gas (LNG). LNG is much cleaner than any other fossil fuels.

Liquid natural gas takes up much less space than the gaseous form. The amount of natural gas that would fit into a big beach ball would fit into a ping-pong ball as a liquid! LNG can be easily stored and used for different purposes. LNG can even be a replacement for gasoline.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Natural gas is relatively inexpensive to extract, and is a "cleaner" fossil fuel than oil or coal. When natural gas is burned, it only releases carbon dioxide and water vapor (which are the exact same gases that we breathe out when we exhale!) This is healthier than burning coal.

However, extracting natural gas can cause environmental problems. Fracturing rocks can cause mini-earthquakes. The high-pressure water and chemicals that are forced underground can also leak to other sources of water. The water sources, used for drinking or bathing, can become contaminated and unsafe.

Other Non-renewable Energy Sources

Fossil fuels are the leading non-renewable energy sources around the world. There are others, however.

Nuclear energy is usually considered another non-renewable energy source. Although nuclear energy itself is a renewable energy source, the material used in nuclear power plants is not.

Nuclear energy harvests the powerful energy in the nucleus, or core, of an atom. Nuclear energy is released through nuclear fission, the process where the nucleus of an atom splits. Nuclear power plants are complex machines that can control nuclear fission to produce electricity.

The material most often used in nuclear power plants is the element uranium. Although uranium is found in rocks all over the world, nuclear power plants usually use a very rare type of uranium, U-235. Uranium is a non-renewable resource.

Nuclear energy is a popular way of generating electricity around the world. Nuclear power plants do not pollute the air or emit greenhouse gases. They can be built in rural or urban area s, and do not destroy the environment around them.

However, nuclear energy is difficult to harvest. Nuclear power plants are very complicated to build and run. Many communities do not have the scientists and engineers to develop a safe and reliable nuclear energy program.

Nuclear energy also produces radioactive material. Radioactive waste can be extremely toxic, causing burns and increasing the risk for cancers, blood diseases, and bone decay among people who are exposed to it.

Biomass energy relies on biomass feedstocks-plants that are processed and burned to create electricity. Biomass feedstocks can include crops such as corn or soy, as well as wood. If people do not replant biomass feedstocks as fast as they use them, biomass energy becomes a non-renewable energy source.

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Most non-renewable energy sources are fossil fuels: coal, petroleum, and natural gas. Carbon is the main element in fossil fuels. For this reason, the time period that fossil fuels formed (about 360-300 million years ago) is called the Carboniferous Period. All fossil fuels formed in a similar way.

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Pros:
- Cheap to run.
- Low in carbon emissions.

Cons:
- Large risk of disasters (Chernobyl, Fukushima).
- Expensive to build.

Source

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Credit: Philipp Egli

Few energy industry topics are discussed as vigorously as nuclear power. For some, nuclear is an underutilised source of energy. Cheap to produce and low carbon, they say nuclear should be a larger part of the world's energy mix as it transitions away from fossil fuels to low-carbon and renewable energy.

For others, nuclear is as bad if not worse than fossil fuels. They argue the potential of a nuclear meltdown like Chernobyl and Fukushima outweighs the positives of nuclear power, as do the excessive costs and difficulty in disposing of the nuclear waste produced.

Unlike traditional fossil fuels like coal, nuclear power does not produce greenhouse gas emissions like methane and CO ₂.

Nuclear advocacy group the World Nuclear Association found that the average emissions for nuclear are 29 tonnes of CO ₂ per gigawatt hour (GWh) of energy produces. This compares favourably with renewable sources like solar (85 tonnes per GWh) and wind (26 tonnes per GWh) and even more favourably with fossil fuels like lignite (1,054 tonnes per GWh) and coal (888 tonnes per GWh).

Nuclear produces roughly the same or less emissions as renewable sources so could be considered an environmentally friendly source of energy.

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Anti-nuclear campaigners will cite the three major nuclear meltdowns of recent times, Three Mile Island in 1979, Chernobyl in 1986 and most recently Fukushima in 2011.

Despite all the safety measures in place these nuclear plants, different factors caused them to go into meltdown, which was devastating for the environment and for local inhabitants who had to flee the affected areas.

The official immediate death toll for Chernobyl was reported as 54 people, although this is consistently disputed, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) established a figure of 4,000 projected deaths in the longer term. Is the potential of nuclear power worth the risk of powerful radiation leaks, mass evacuations and billions spent in repairs?

Pro - Not intermittent

US President Donald Trump famously decried wind energy for its intermittency, saying: "When the wind stops blowing, that's the end of your electric." The consistent criticism of renewable energy like wind and solar is that they only produce power when the wind is blowing or the sun is shining.

Nuclear, however, is not intermittent, as nuclear power plants can run without any interruptions for a year and more without interruptions or maintenance, making it a more reliable source of energy.

One side effect of nuclear power is the amount of nuclear waste it produces. It has been estimated that the world produces some 34,000m ³ of nuclear waste each year, waste that takes years to degrade.

Anti-nuclear environmental group Greenpeace released a report in January 2019 that detailed what it called a nuclear waste 'crisis' for which there is 'no solution on the horizon'. One such solution was a concrete nuclear waste 'coffin' on Runit Island, which has begun to crack open and potentially release radioactive material.

Nuclear power plants are cheaper to run than their coal or gas rivals. It has been estimated that even factoring in costs such as managing radioactive fuel and disposal nuclear plants cost between 33 to 50% of a coal plant and 20 to 25% of a gas combined-cycle plant.

The amount of energy produced is also superior to most other forms. The US Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that to replace a 1GW nuclear power plant would require 2GW of coal or 3GW to 4GW from renewable sources to generate the same amount of electricity.

Con - Expensive to build

The initial costs for building a nuclear power plant are steep. A recent virtual test reactor in the US estimate rose from $3.5bn to $6bn alongside huge extra costs to maintain the facility.

South Africa scrapped plans to add 9.6GW of nuclear power to its energy mix due to the cost, which was estimated anywhere between $34-84bn. So whilst nuclear plants are cheap to run and produce inexpensive fuel, the initial costs are off-putting.

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Nuclear power pros and cons: What's the impact of the energy source?

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What are the pros and cons of nuclear power? Power-technology.com weighs up opinions on the controversial source of energy.

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Pros:
- Non toxic substance and is biodegradable
- Safe to transport
- Emissions are much less compared to gasoline

Cons:
- Requires diesel engine
- Does not hold much power comparative to diesel and gasoline (10% less powerful)
- Does not last in storage for extended periods without corrosion and change in liquidity

https://www.carsdirect.com/green-cars/pros-and-cons-of-biodiesel-energy

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Pro: Wind power is cost-effective. Land-based utility-scale wind is one of the lowest-priced energy sources. It's a clean fuel source. Wind energy doesn't pollute the air because they don't emit don't produce atmospheric emissions that cause acid rain, smog, or greenhouse gases.

Cons: Good land-based wind sites are often located in remote locations, far from cities where the electricity is needed. Turbines  cause noise pollution.

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Advantages and Challenges of Wind Energy

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Advantages and Challenges of Wind Energy

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Non Renewable source of energy

Pro:
-There's an abundance of coal in the world
-Making it cheap and affordable
-Low capital expense needed to build coal powered generation plants

Con:
-Release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when burned for energy
-The extraction process can be dangerous as it can cause environmental consequences such as acidification of streams

Link: https://sciencing.com/pros-cons-of-coal-energy-13638154.html